This invention relates generally to a domestic appliance and more particularly to a refrigeration appliance having a cabinet and a door each including respective trim wherein the door is adjustable in such a manner so as not to affect the flush relationship of the exterior trim.
Of course, it is commonly and generally known to provide trim kits for decorative application to an appliance, such as a refrigerator. Conventional trim kits include a first trim strip attached to a door surface which protrudes forwardly therefrom for attachment of a decorative trim panel.
Further, it is known to provide a second trim strip to an edge of the cabinet which substantially matches the first trim strip applied to the door. The second trim strip is attached to the cabinet edge and protrudes forwardly therefrom so as to be flush with the first trim strip on the door with respect to a front plane of the appliance cabinet.
Also, it is known to provide for adjustment of the position of the door in order to align the door seal or gasket between the door and the cabinet. However, the adjustment typically results in the trim strips on the door and the cabinet being misaligned with respect to each other.
To resolve these problems, refrigeration appliances have been designed to provide for adjustment in the doors resulting in a desired flush appearance. In the alternative, refrigeration appliances have been designed to provide for a proper front-to-back gasket spacing between the cabinet and the door. However, an appliance having a decorative trim that resolves both of these problems has not been developed.
Door trim is typically designed to produce a "picture-frame" appearance when a door of an appliance is closed. Such a design is typically achieved with two side trim pieces and one top trim piece affixed to the appliance cabinet to form an exterior portion of the frame. The exterior portion surrounds an interior portion formed by trim pieces which are attached to the doors. A gap of approximately one-quarter of an inch between the exterior portion and the interior portion provides the desired picture-frame appearance.
Often, however, it is difficult to secure the door on the product, such as a refrigerator, to maintain the desired gap consistently around the periphery of the product. Furthermore, the door frequently requires front-to-back adjustment to satisfy gasket spacing requirements between the door and the cabinet which often destroys the desired flush, picture-frame appearance.
A need, therefore, exists for providing an improved trim kit assembly resulting in a picture-frame appearance and further eliminates the requirement of adjusting the door to provide a flush appearance between the door trim and the cabinet trim, yet provides for door adjustability for satisfying gasket spacing requirements.